Tuesday, June 28, 2011

It is now four weeks since we decided to do this project. Our doors have been open for a week. Our MOOC has officially been open for two days. Some of us are beginning to settle into groups and patterns. Others are not. Many are lurking and more are surveying what is on the table.

Some numbers on this sunny early evening on the prairie:

2,395 is the current registration count - I can't tell exactly how many countries are represented since we did not require that those registering designate location, but I stopped counting at 60 the other day.

3,250 is the number of Google Group eduMOOC page views. There are officially 1,275 members in the group, with 1,164 pending. So far, there are 477 messages in 43 topical areas.

58 is the number of members in the eduMOOC Wikispace - this is really worth visiting - http://edumooc.wikispaces.com/ . Eight formal groups. Some more information including RSS feed of the Online Learning Update blog. One of the groups is writing in Portuguese. Another is info for face-to-face meetings in NZ.

79 is the number of Delicious bookmarks for edumooc (including one pointing to the Diigo edumooc page)! http://delicious.com/

145 is the number of network profiles listed now. You should enter your data so others can follow you - use the entry form to submit info that is then posted at the networking profile page. When you view the profile page, know that you can search the page by pressing ctrl + F.

Countless Tweets with #edumooc. (find them by clicking in left column of home site)

Countless blogs. (find them at the networking profile page!)

Still looking for something to do in the eduMOOC - add to the totals above by visiting, joining in, linking up!

In the tweeting and discussions....

I saw those who are seeking learning objectives. The participants are the ones who must determine their own objectives. You will decide what you want to learn. If you need help in writing out your learning objectives, a good resource is: http://tilt.colostate.edu/tips/tip.cfm?tipid=92 And, in the end, it is you who will decide if you succeeded what you set out to accomplish.

I saw some concern about repetition of the resources listed on the various weekly pages. As we get closer, to the designated weeks, those will be updated by the moderators. Weeks one and two have lots of resources specific to their topics.

I saw some concern that this might be a "stuffy" MOOC. Heavens, I hope not! I have never been accused of being stuffy before - and I don't want to begin now. If it seems stuffy in here - throw open the window. Post some cartoons! Send up some balloons! And usher out those stuffy buffoons!

Thanks to many of you who have chosen to follow my tweets @rayschroeder. I try to post at least one interesting item early each morning (US time) to help get us started on the right foot. Each one includes a URL to what I think is an interesting article.

Thanks also to many of you who are following the Online Learning Update blog. I aggregated it at Wikispaces eduMOOC and it is tweeted @onlinelearningu. More blogs and twitters lined in the right column over here ->

I can't wait until our first panel discussion on Thursday. The streaming site looks great - and the auto java-enabled (or not) detect is very cool - will adjust for mobile listeners/viewers. I wonder just how many will connect for the live session... how many for the recorded sessions.